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Friday, February 24, 2006 Available online from law.com: An article is headlined "As Date With Playmate Approaches, High Court to Ponder Jurisdiction Issue; In case involving Anna Nicole Smith, justices will examine jurisdiction in probate matters and rights of trust beneficiaries." And the brand-new installment of my "On Appeal" column is headlined "Congress Puts 'Partial-Birth' Abortion Back on the Supreme Court's Agenda." "Ex-Enron exec didn't link actions to crime": Mary Flood has this article today in The Houston Chronicle. Posted at 10:33 PM by Howard Bashman "Judge Scolds RIM for Not Settling; BlackBerry Injunction Could Be Next Step": Saturday's edition of The Washington Post will contain an article that begins, "A federal judge Friday criticized Research in Motion Ltd., the Canadian company that makes the BlackBerry e-mail device, for failing to settle its patent dispute with McLean-based NTP Inc. While the judge did not impose an injunction that many users feared would halt the popular BlackBerry service, his comments led observers to conclude that the injunction could come soon." And this evening's broadcast of NPR's "All Things Considered" contained a segment entitled "Blackberry Users Await Decision in Patent Case." "Politics of Abortion Back in the Spotlight": This segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on today's broadcast of NPR's "Day to Day." Posted at 05:40 PM by Howard Bashman "Ohio Residents Want Court to End Tax Break": The AP provides this preview of a case to be argued next Wednesday in the U.S. Supreme Court. Posted at 05:00 PM by Howard Bashman In news from Hawaii: The Associated Press provides a report headlined "Abortion law change dropped; Opponents warned the state would legalize late-term procedures" that begins, "State representatives turned away a change in the law yesterday that opponents said would have expanded abortion rights to make the procedure available up until birth." Posted at 04:54 PM by Howard Bashman "Yahoo Mail reverses ban on 'allah' in usernames": c|net News.com provides a report that begins, "Yahoo Mail will now let people register usernames that include the word 'allah,' after a ban designed to thwart prejudice went astray. The policy reversal, announced Wednesday, came too late for Linda Callahan of Ashfield, Mass., who set up a Google Gmail account after being rejected by Yahoo Mail because of the presence of 'allah' in her name, said her son, Ed Callahan." And in other coverage, yesterday's edition of The Winona Daily News reported that "Fountain City man wins one for Allah." "Judge reserves decision on RIM": The Toronto Globe and Mail provides this news update. Posted at 04:15 PM by Howard Bashman "Fourth Circuit on crack (guidelines, that is)": The "Sentencing Law and Policy" blog provides some provocative commentary on today's Fourth Circuit ruling, which I earlier noted here. Posted at 04:00 PM by Howard Bashman The Supreme Court of Utah's opinion contains as many pages as the ousted judge has wives: The Salt Lake Tribune provides a news update headlined "Utah Supreme Court ousts polygamist judge." And The Associated Press reports that "Polygamist Judge Ordered Off Utah Bench." You can access today's three-page ruling of the Supreme Court of Utah at this link. The Associated Press is reporting: Gina Holland reports that "Lethal Injection Executions Face Scrutiny." And in other news, "Jury Pool Set for Moussaoui Sentencing." The Federal Circuit's living in the past: One year ago today, I was on vacation with the family on a cruise through the Caribbean. I thank the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit for the reminder, because today it issued a brand-new opinion announcing that the case was decided "February 24, 2005." I guess that's one way to prevent a timely petition for rehearing or certiorari. Posted at 03:28 PM by Howard Bashman "S.D. House Approves Abortion Ban Bill": The Associated Press provides a report that begins, "State lawmakers voted Friday to ban nearly all abortions in South Dakota and sent the measure to the governor, who said he is inclined to sign it. Under the legislation, doctors in South Dakota would face up to five years in prison for performing an abortion unless it was necessary to save the woman's life." And The Argus Leader of Sioux Falls, South Dakota provides a news update headlined "House sends abortion bill to Rounds; Governor says he's inclined to sign ban." And the answer is "no": The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit today issued an opinion that begins, "The principal question presented in this appeal is whether a district court in the post-Booker world can vary from the advisory sentencing range under the Guidelines by substituting its own crack cocaine/powder cocaine ratio for the 100:1 crack cocaine/powder cocaine ratio chosen by Congress." Posted at 02:54 PM by Howard Bashman "Gathright himself has observed that it is 'not unusual' for people hearing his jeremiads 'to become upset' or 'angry' when, for instance, he calls women 'whores,' 'sluts,' 'Jezebels,' 'prostitutes' and 'daughters of Babylon' or, at an event celebrating tolerance of homosexuality, he dons a t-shirt reading, 'Got AIDS Yet?'" The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit today has issued a decision that begins, "This case concerns the intersection of two First Amendment rights: on the one hand, the classic right of an individual to speak in the town square; on the other hand, the interest organizations have in not being compelled to communicate messages not of their choosing." Posted at 02:45 PM by Howard Bashman "New abortion protocol allowed": At "SCOTUSblog," Lyle Denniston has this post about today's Sixth Circuit ruling, which I previously noted here. Posted at 02:33 PM by Howard Bashman "Judge: No immediate BlackBerry shutdown, yet; But judge says he will issue a decision on an injunction 'as soon as reasonably possible.'" CNNMoney.com provides a report that begins, "A judge spared millions of users from an immediate shutdown of the BlackBerry portable e-mail devices on Friday. Wrapping up nearly four hours of arguments in a district court in Richmond, Va., Judge James Spencer said he would not impose an immediate injunction against BlackBerry maker Research in Motion." The Associated Press reports that "Judge Ends BlackBerry Hearing; No Decision." And Reuters reports that "US judge stops short of BlackBerry cutoff." "Rehnquist court made law clearer, Scalia says; Late justice called collegial": The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel today contains an article that begins, "The United States Supreme Court is becoming more transparent thanks to 19 years of leadership by Shorewood native William Rehnquist, Justice Antonin Scalia told a crowd of attorneys Thursday afternoon at the Pfister Hotel. Scalia was the keynote speaker at a conference on the legacy of the Rehnquist court, sponsored by the Bradley Foundation and the Federalist Society." Ann Althouse was there too, and she provides this report at her blog. Posted at 12:40 PM by Howard Bashman "Insistent Message: Facing Shutdown Threat, Maker Of BlackBerry Digs In for Battle; RIM's Balsillie Spurns a Deal In Wireless-Patent Fight And Pushes 'Workaround'; Calling Sprint's Customers." This front page article (pass-through link) appears today in The Wall Street Journal. Posted at 12:20 PM by Howard Bashman "Judge Hears Arguments in Blackberry Case": The Associated Press provides this update. Posted at 11:14 AM by Howard Bashman "Judge begins hearing on BlackBerry's fate": Reuters provides this updated report. Posted at 10:45 AM by Howard Bashman Available online from Slate: Emily Bazelon has a jurisprudence essay entitled "Tight Briefs: The government's tricky lawyering in the Guantanamo Bay cases." And William Saletan has an essay entitled "Never Say Never: The arrogance of the partial-birth abortion ban." Coincidentally, next Monday's installment of my weekly "On Appeal" column, which should debut online tonight at law.com, is provisionally titled "Congress Puts 'Partial–Birth' Abortion Back on the Supreme Court's Agenda," and it will examine in detail the three different federal appellate court rulings (accessible via this earlier post) that have declared unconstitutional the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. "In Mexico, they call it 'la mordida' (literally, 'the bite'); in Iran, 'bakhshish'; and in France, 'pot-de-vin.' Here in America, we call it a 'payoff' and, today, the majority calls it lawful." So begins D.C. Circuit Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson's opinion issued today dissenting from that court's reversal of a D.C. Metropolitan Police Department detective's convictions on three counts of receiving illegal gratuities in violation of federal law. You can access the complete ruling at this link. Posted at 10:33 AM by Howard Bashman Available online from the First Amendment Center: Tony Mauro has news analyses headlined "Religious liberty gets boost in hallucinogenic tea case" and "Alito has experience in public-employee speech cases." And a news release is entitled "Moot Court examines reporter's privilege." U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit holds that an Ohio statute prohibiting the off-label use of the abortion drug RU-486 may be preliminarily enjoined: You can access today's ruling at this link. Posted at 09:50 AM by Howard Bashman "H&R Block Messes Up Its Own Taxes": "TaxProf Blog" provides this report. Posted at 09:18 AM by Howard Bashman U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issues notice reminding counsel of the Judicial Conference's Policy on Privacy: You can access the text of the notice, described here as "new," at this link. I discussed this issue in my recent law.com column titled "Redact This: Preserving Secrets on Appeal in the Digital Age." As the Third Circuit's Chief Judge remarked to me two days ago, "Everybody reads Bashman." "South Dakota Poised to Pass Sweeping Abortion Ban": This segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on today's broadcast of NPR's "Morning Edition." Posted at 08:55 AM by Howard Bashman In news from Canada: The Toronto Globe and Mail today contains articles headlined "Top-court pick praised, review process panned" and "Rothstein like 'homing missile' on legal issues; Hard-working jurist seen as fair-minded, intellectually demanding, 'bloody bright.'" And The Toronto Star reports today that "Judge will make legal history; First nominee to face MPs' queries; Rothstein known for brilliance, wit." "RIM says it's willing to cut a cheque; Would settle patent issues with NTP but wary of limits on future business": This article appears today in The Toronto Globe and Mail. The Chicago Tribune reports today that "BlackBerry brigade not worried; they see options; Friday hearing could shut down service." The Toronto Star reports that "NTP, RIM exchange final barbs; BlackBerry users await court ruling; Judge to decide fate of device in U.S." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that "BlackBerry addicts await judge's decision." The San Jose Mercury News reports that "Judgment day arrives in dispute over patents; If a shutdown is ordered, a workaround for the text-messaging service is ready to go." The Louisville Courier-Journal contains an article headlined "Could BlackBerry go dim? Possible shutdown leaves many uneasy." BBC News reports that "Ruling due on Blackberry shutdown; The maker of the Blackberry device is awaiting a court decision that could force it to shut down its mobile e-mail service in the US." c|net News.com provides reports headlined "Bye-bye, BlackBerry?" and "RIM chief: Chances of NTP deal appear slim." Forbes.com provides a report headlined "RIM's Last Shot?" National Post reports that "RIM holds out olive branch; BlackBerry producer willing to pay higher cut of U.S. sales in patent dispute." The Associated Press reports that "BlackBerry Dispute Headed to Courtroom." Reuters reports that "Fate of US BlackBerry service goes back to court." And Bloomberg News reports that "BlackBerry Service in U.S. May Be Halted After Hearing Today." In today's edition of The Los Angeles Times: Edward Blum has an op-ed entitled "Don't mess with Texas districts." And Garret Keizer has an op-ed entitled "The divine irony of 'intelligent design.'" The New York Sun is reporting: In today's newspaper, Josh Gerstein reports that "U.S. Readies Case Against Tort Lawyers." And in other news, "Americans Sue French Bank In Terror Case." "Appeals court reinstates lawsuit over photo in magazine's sex article": The Associated Press provides this report. My earlier coverage is here. Posted at 07:02 AM by Howard Bashman "Obscenity ruling's impact uncertain": The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today contains an article that begins, "A federal appeals court ruling could limit the ability of local governments to prosecute stores selling adult videos and sex toys." My earlier coverage is here. Posted at 07:00 AM by Howard Bashman "Special Counsel in Plame Case Invalid, Libby Contends": The Washington Post today contains an article that begins, "Attorneys for Vice President Cheney's former top aide argued yesterday that a federal court should dismiss all charges against him because a special prosecutor lacked the legal authority to bring the charges." And The Washington Times reports today that "Libby's attorneys seek to dismiss indictment."  
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